María Auxiliadora

The “Bienestar y Progreso” (Wellbeing and Progress) communal bank meets every fifteen days in Colorado in Montecristi Canton known for its rich pre-colonial culture and for its crafts that are renown both nationally and internationally; it’s where the famous straw hats come from.

María, 40, lives here. She’s married and has four children who are 21, 20, 19 and 14 years of age; they all live at home and her youngest daughter attends school. Her husband is a professional chauffeur.

In order to earn her own income and be able to help with household expenses, she sells clothes, sandals and children’s shoes door-to-door. She goes out three days a week throughout the city offering her products and also sells from home every day where her best-known customers come by. She buys her merchandise in Guayaquil and Huaquillas as needed. She’s been in business 8 years and has done very well. In general, what she sells the most is women’s clothes.

She will use this loan to buy more merchandise like pants, blouses, t-shirts and children’s clothes. She’s been in the communal bank for 7 years and likes it because she’s able to expand the business each time with the loans. Her dream is to have a nice house with all the comforts.